The present invention relates to an alignment method and an alignment apparatus for transfer, and more specifically to an alignment method and an alignment apparatus for a transfer process which is capable of correctly repeating the transfer of a transfer pattern to a work with high precision, and may particularly preferably be used in a transfer process wherein a printing plate having a curved surface is used as in the case of a roller transfer process, etc., and a pattern thereof is sequentially transferred to the work while the contact face between the plate and the work is shifted. For example, the present invention is particularly preferably applicable to the production of a thin film semiconductor element.
For example, in the case of the production of a thin film semiconductor element, it is necessary to correctly prepare a minute pattern for forming a circuit or an element.
In the production of such a thin film semiconductor element, for example, it is conceivable to use a method wherein a resist ink is directly applied onto a work (or material to be subjected to processing); or a photoresist layer is formed thereof by coating in advance, the work is supplied with a printing ink layer which has a predetermined configuration and is capable of intercepting ultraviolet rays, by a printing process, the resultant work is subjected to exposure and development steps, and then is subjected to an etching treatment, thereby to provide a minute pattern for forming an electric circuit or element.
In such a process, in order to correctly form the minute pattern for forming a circuit or an element of a thin film semiconductor by use of a printing process, it is necessary to effect correct positioning between the printed pattern which has already been formed on the member to be printed, and a pattern of the printing ink to be newly subjected to printing.
However, in the conventional printing process, in general, the positioning (or registration) between a member to be printed and a printing ink pattern is regulated by using preliminary printing in advance. When good results are obtained in a certain step of the preliminary printing, the printing ink pattern is actually transferred to the member to be printed. In the prior art, even when the positional relation between the member to be printed and the printing ink pattern is changed to a certain extent, the transfer of the printing ink pattern is generally continued regardless of such a change.
Accordingly, the positioning precision and reproducibility in the positioning of the printing ink pattern to be transferred to the member to be printed by the conventional printing process is at most 20 to 30 .mu.m, which does not reach the level of the positioning precision and reproducibility required for an electroconductive minute pattern for the thin film semiconductor element, etc.